Despite the fact that Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon is not allowed to move in prayer, one must move if one violates the distance guidelines • The reason: danger of death
Illustrative image (photographed has no connection to the article) // Photo: Liron Moldovan
Question: Shalom Harav, in the middle of the eighteenth prayer, a man stood by a very small distance of less than a meter. Although he is wearing a mask, he does not pay attention to the required distance. Am I allowed to stop praying and move or will "even a snake bound on its heel not stop"?
Answer: The Mishnah in Tractate Brachot teaches us that nothing should be stopped in a standing prayer. "Even the king asking for his safety we will not answer, and even a snake bound on its heel will not stop." However, the Gemara restricts this law to cases where there is no danger to lives, and to cases where there is danger to lives when the worshiper can stop. For example, if there is a fear that the king will harm him, or that the animal bound on his heel is a venomous animal, then surely he will stop his prayer. This is also the ruling of the Shulchan Aruch, and according to this it seems that in our case it is permissible to cease mental supervision.
Another question that arises in light of this is whether a short walk is considered a break? According to Rabbeinu Yonah, if a non-venomous snake is tied on its heel, it is forbidden to stop, but a person is allowed to move to remove the snake, because walking is not a stop, and so the Rama rules. We also note that there are cases where arbitrators allowed a light act or short gear Prayer When the goal is to remove a factor that bothers the worshiper and disturbs him in his prayer, it should be emphasized that in any situation one should check whether the harassment is indeed disturbing, but if it really is significant harassment that prevents a person from feeling before God, the worshiper is allowed to move elsewhere in the middle of prayer.
Therefore, in practice, there is an obligation to adhere to the guidelines of the Ministry of Health even during prayer. Keep two meters away from each other, and of course wear a mask. In addition, it is forbidden to pray in a place where one does not take care of it and stands in a crowd and the like, and even praying in units should be preferred. This is why a person who has started praying and a person is standing next to him, he can walk away even in the middle of eighteen and he should not be afraid of the break.
Unfortunately we are now in a period of re-closure. This reality requires each of us to be extra careful. Mental supervision rejects the entire Torah, and also rejects prayer. Certainly when a person endangers someone else there is also an injury of between a person and his friend. Therefore, on the one hand we should strive to pray in the minyan, but on the other hand we must strictly adhere to the rules of the Ministry of Health and observe all the guidelines in order to prevent the spread of the disease and not harm others.
The author is the head of the yeshiva and rabbi of the Lev Academic Center in Jerusalem, chairman of the Ladders Association and rabbi of Alon Shvut Darom.
